Golf ball retriever



Sept. 20, 1949. w. c. SANDOR GOLF BALL RETRIEVER Filed Dec. 2, 1946INVENTOR. WILL/HM asauna Patented Sept. 20, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE GOLF BALL RETRIEVER William C. Sandor, Parma, Ohio ApplicationDecember 2, 1946, Serial No. 713,423

5 Claims. (01. 294-19) This invention relates to golf ball retrieversfor retrieving golf balls from water hazards and other inaccessibleplaces.

The general object of this invention is the provision of an improvedgolf ball retriever of steel wire which is formed with a yieldinglyexpansible grapple member constructed to yieldingly grip and support agolf ball when dropped in an inaccessible place such as a water hazardor other remote and congested places.

This general object of the invention is attained by the provision of asteel wire golf ball retriever having as grapple member an open,yieldingly expansible loop, the diameter of which is slightly less thanthe diameter of a golf ball, the expansible loop permitting yieldinglygripping a golf ball encircled by the loop.

Another object of the invention therefore is the provision of animproved steel wire golf ball retriever which is for-med with anexpansible,

.open wire loop having a diameter slightly less than the diameter of agolf ball.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a steel wire golfball retriever with an expansible, open wire loop having a diameterslightly less than the diameter of a golf ball and guiding and stoppingmeans integrally extended from the free end of the wire loop to preventa golf ball from fully passing through the open wire loop and supportsuch golf ball in the loop during retrieving operations.

Additional objects and features of invention, combinations and relationsof parts, by which the objects in view have been attained, will appearand are set forth in detail in the course of the followingspecification.

The drawing accompanying and forming part of the specificationillustrates certain practical embodiments of the invention, but it willbe apparent as the specification proceeds that the structure may bemodified and changed in various ways without departure from the truespirit and broad scope of the invention.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a steel wire golf ball retriever constructed inaccordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a side-view of the steel wire golf ball retriever shown inFig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side-view showing the steel wire golf ball retrieverdisclosed in Figs. 1 and 2 in position to grip a golf ball; and

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the said golf ball retriever whengripping a golf ball, the retriever being in upside-down position andsupporting the gripped golf ball by guiding and stopping meansassociated with the loop of the retriever.

Referring now more particularly to the structure shown in the drawing,reference numeral 2 denotes a steel wire golf ball retriever embodyingan open, looped grapple member 3 and an extensible handle member 4integrally extended from member 3. The grapple member consists of anopen wire loop 5 forming approximately threefourths of a circle having adiameter slightly smaller than the diameter of a golf ball. This loophas integrally extended from its one end handle member 4 and from itsother end a guiding and supporting member 6 including a lower guidingportion 1 angularly related to a plane through open loop 5 and an uppersupporting portion 8 angularly and laterally extended from the end ofportion 1 to engage and support a golf ball when forced into and partlythrough wire loop 5.

Handle member 4 embodies a stationary wire member 9 integrally extendedfrom one end of wire loop 5 and a shiftable wire member In slidablycoupled with stationary wire member 9 by clips I I and I2. These clipsencircle the two wire members and each of these clips is rigidly coupledwith one of said wire members; thus, clip I! is coupled with stationarywire member 9 by extend ing a bent end portion M on member 9 through ahole I5 in the wall of clip H, and clip I2 is coupled with shiftablewire member ID by extending an angularly offset end portion I6 on memberin through a hole I! in the wall of clip 12. This arrangement permitssubstantial elongation of member 4 and increases the reach of the golfball retriever.

A handle It at the outer end of shiftable wire member Ill permits properhandling of the retriever. This handle is formed by bending the end ofwire member Ill back upon itself to form parallelly arranged, spacedwire portions 2|, 22 connected at one end by a curved wire portion 23and spaced at its other end by an angular offset locking portion 24.This offset portion cooperates with clip H to prevent unintendedelongation of the retriever handle member 4 when in its unextendedposition, as will readily be understood from inspection of the drawing.A locking action of offset portion 24 is readily overcome by slightoutward pulling of wire portion 2| to permit passing of clip ll underlocking portion 24.

In operation, the open loop grapple member 3 is brought to a positionabove the top of the golf ball to be retrieved and pressed downwardlyupon such ball until open loop 5 of the grapple member is forced toexpand and slide over the largest diameter of the golf ball to properlyhold same in the grapple memberQopen loop 5, after expansion when forcedover the ball, automatically retracts to original size and preventsescape of the ball from the grapple member. In this operation, guidingand supporting member 1 prevents the golf ball from fully passingthrough the grapple member. Retrieving of a golf ball is greatlyfacilitated when grapple member 3 is rotated to ups d -down position toseat andrest the olf ball on guiding and supporting member 6.

Having thus described my invention what'I claim is: V

1. A'golf ball retriever embodying, a straight steel wire structure,formed at its one end with an one end to form a handle, and clip membersattached torthe respective steel wires and coupled with the otherrespective steel wires to slidably couple the wires at spaced pointswith each other and provide said golf ball retriever'with an extensiblehandle member. 7

5. A golf ball retriever embodying a straight steel wire bent at one endto form an open yieldingly expansible loop with a diameter slightly lessthan the diameter o a g lf all, and n upw r extension dimensioned andbent to form a stopping means for a golf ball extended more than halfthrough said open loop, a second straight steel wire bent at one end toform an elongated open-loop, yielding grapple member arranged in a plhrough the axis of said straight steel wire structure and havinga'diameter slightly less 7 than the diameter of a golf ball, andstopping means at the end of the open-loop grapple memher x ended in subtantial vertical rela ion from the end or said grapple member andbent oprevent passing of a salt ball thr ugh said grapp member when the olfball is more than half extended through said yie ding g apple member.

2. A golf ball retriever embodying a. straight steel wire bent atone'end to -form an Open, yieldely expansible loop with a diameter s i yless than the diame er of. a golf ball and an upward extensiondimensioned and bent to ,form a stoppin means for a 05 ball extended m ethan half through said pen 1 9?,

3- A olf ball retriever as described in claim 2, in luding a secondstraight steel wire bent at oneend to form a handl the straight wire prtions of said steel wirw being .slidably coupled a paced points 1 0provide saidgolf ball retriever With an extensible, handle member Iorits open loop. e p

4. A golf ball retriever as dessribed :in claim including a secondstraight steel wire bent at .Number Name Date 7 1,658,145 Uyei nuns",-.=.s Feb. '7, 1928 1, 22,519 Du Cherie H- is July 13.0, L929 3 ,135,232Dawn q, Nov. :1, 1938 2, 04,5 2 Eilip ak; was .1 June 11, 951.02,205,345 Christensen was; mine 18,."19a0 FOREIi GN PATENTS; v

470 Number 7 Country Date vanezrz loop-shaped handle, and clip membersattached to the respective straight steel wires and coupled with theother respective steel wires to; slidably' couple the wires at spacedpoints with each other and provide the golf ball retriever with anextensible handle member, and releasable locking means on saidelongated, loop shaped handle co- -operating with one of said clipmembers in Preventing shifting of said straight wires when the handlemember is in unextendedposition.

' V c. SANDOR; REFERENCES s ren The followingreferences are of record inthe file of this patent:

' UNITED STATES 'PAFi'ENTS Germany May 15, 1,9297

